When thinking about starting a small business you want to think about “Why are you starting the business enterprise?” Quite often someone decides to start a business with the mindset they have more free time, home based, and also have a flexible schedule. Unfortunately, it is important to avoid these myths. Most the time, starting a small business isn’t any of the things. Instead, it is long hours, working at home may be a distraction, less flexibility, and there are lots of hats to juggle. It’s completely different then working for a company and it is vital that you keep all of this at heart when deciding if starting a business is right for you. If it is, then let’s dive into getting started with your business idea!
Attitude is EVERYTHING. You should always keep a cheery attitude. Many things are going to happen during the lifecycle of the company, both bad and the good, and it is important is to keep a positive attitude.
BIGGEST OBSTACLES TO OVERCOME
The two biggest obstacles startups face whenever starting a business is money and status. You must make sure you can easily stay afloat and have a way of financing when starting out. And reputation is also an obstacle because you don’t possess a reputation or customers. Unless you start out with several customers, quite often you are getting started very alone.
WHAT YOU NEED?
VIABLE PRODUCT
You need to provide a product/service that people want to buy. Researching similar products/services is essential to see what else is out there that is similar to your idea and then determine how your product will be much better than the competition. It is also important to have the ability to bring experience to the desk. It is the experience you have that will make the company. Typically, you need to have a niche so that you can take a focused approach and decide what sort of company you need it to be. Lastly, you need to consider if you can sell enough of your service or product to make a living. Are you considering able to cover each of the expenses and salaries that come with a business?
BUSINESS PLAN
A business plan is completely essential. Exactly what is a business plan?
Focus on an executive summary, which is a high-level description of what the business is going to do. Next, you will need a business description that lays out the business in detail. Then, comes the marketplace analysis, who is likely to be your customer and who is your rivals? Next, is organization management. Who’s going to manage the business? Are you going to manage it yourself or will you hire someone from the outside to handle your business? Quite often you are starting managing the business yourself. Next, you need a sales strategy, what type of sales strategy are you going to encompass? And lastly, you should include funding requirements and monetary projections. Which kind of funding should you start the business and just how much do you project to make?
A written plan is critical. It is absolutely essential you write down the above info on paper.
There are plenty of business plan templates available to help. Even if you are an established business, its not necessary anything complicated. Yet another resource is a easy roadmap. This breaks out month by month projections for 2 2 years. What industry events will you attend? How many people will you hire? What type of marketing campaigns do you want to run?
Last, goals are extremely important. You need to set specific goals in your organization plan so you know where you are heading.
MEANS OF FINANCING
How will you finance your business? Some of the key queries to ask are how much cash will you need to remain afloat? Will you be going for a salary? corporate secretarial services singapore Exactly what will your non-salary expenses be? How many people do you plan on hiring the first year? What about company benefits? Even if you are by yourself, you will need benefits and insurance. These are all questions you need to think about.
Should you self-finance or take out a loan? Self-financing is often recommended for those who have enough money in the bank to float the business as well as your salary for a year or two. This option reduces the pressure. The final thing you want is pressure from creditors. Loan products are going to be difficult to procure. In the event that you manage to get a loan, you will need to personal guarantee and you will need collateral.
There is also the possibility for a financial business spouse, however, a financial business companion can often lead to meddling and pressure. In addition, it may cause one to run the business differently you then envisioned. Remember, you’re starting the business to put your own spin onto it!
A fourth option is a funding company. This can be a viable option because they will often perform your payroll and invoicing for you. Sometimes the funding company will provide a basic ATS system as well that could help you start. The downside to a funding company is often it is hard to breakaway. It is advisable to pay off loans with interest and sometimes it isn’t financially feasible to breakaway. If you use a funding company, you would like to make sure you understand the agreement and know what it takes to step away from the funding company.